Skirmishes

Months followed, since they message had been sent.

Vultures circled in the air, attracted by the scent of death and carnage. So much meat lay on the ground for them to feast upon. However, these buzzards would have to wait before they could swoop down for a bite, as the battle had yet to come to a close.

On a small hill, Uriel quietly watched and observed. Four of her advisers: Mycelia, Jotun and Sonpra accompanied her. The main and rear guards of her forces also stood present and ready. As for the vanguard, they rallied down in the valley and fought against the enemy clans.

Chaos took hold of the land. Both sides relentlessly swung and thrust their weapons at one another. Tails whipped, jaws snapped and claws ripped through scales and flesh. Blood spilled and bodies dropped. Warriors roared to the top of their lungs to intimidate their enemies, as well as display their courage and determination to survive the battle.

The sounds of the fighting reached far across the land. Their struggles and actions made the surrounding temperature much hotter than it should have been. A pungent stench drifted in the air, as the battle continued.

Each one fought valiantly, but it did not take much to recognize the winning side. The Ovoo and Chamael drove their enemies back, striking like a savage tide that washed away everything in its path. The enemy clans could do naught, but struggle and fall before this vicious alliance.

"It seems like another victory for the Ovoo and Chamael, Lady Overlord," Sonpra declared, taking a deep breath.

"Yes, so it seems," Uriel murmured with a nod.

"You don't seem all that pleased with the results," Sonpra remarked, his bulging eyes shifting towards Uriel.

"It just seems all too easy," Uriel replied with a slight shrug. "Chieftain Sonpra, which clan owns this territory?"

"That would be the Chlamydo," Sonpra answered. "They're another Lesser Clan like the Ovoo. It shouldn't be that much of a surprise that they stand no chance against us."

"I see," Uriel muttered, still inspecting the opposing clan. "Tell me, is the Chlamydo supposed to be filled with such a diverse group of clansmen?"

Uriel noted the enemy. Their forces didn't compose of a single group of lizard folk. One third of them appeared to have excess skin folded against their neck and head. Another portion had thick horns just above their eyes, and final group had enormous mouths. From the looks of things, this looked to be a combined force, rather than just a single clan.

"You are correct, Lady Overlord," Sonpra admitted, exhaling deeply through his nostrils. "We are facing three clans in total, the Chlamydo, the Igua and the Teii. Quite surprising, really."

"A combination of three clans," Uriel grunted, as she crossed her arms. "Yet not a single one of them actually belongs to the Allosaur. As a matter of fact, not even a single Allosaur warrior in sight."

Sonpra raised his head. "That is quite true!" he realized. "We have openly declared that we would attack the Allosaur, but we have yet to actually meet any Allosaur warriors in any of our battles."

"Just how many clans have stood in our way, so far?" Uriel asked.

Sonpra looked at his fingers and quietly counted. "This is our fifth battle," he replied. "Including these three, I'd say we've already fought seven clans."

"Seven sacrificed," Uriel snarled with a frown. "Do the Allosaur plan to let their Lesser Clan allies do all the fighting for them?"

"Perhaps they are hoping to weaken us, and strike when we are vulnerable," Jotun assumed. Having drank Mycelia's potion, the Drow found himself able to understand and speak lizard speech.

"If that's the case, then perhaps these Allosaur are smarter than we thought," Uriel growled. "Although, I doubt it would be good for appearances."

"Appearances don't really matter, as long as one wins," Sonpra snorted.

"I'm quite surprised you think that way, chieftain," Uriel remarked. "I mean no offense, but the clans seem to put much value in traditions, rules and other principles. Does the Chamael not hold the same values?"

"Honor is a fleeting thing, Lady Overlord," Sonpra replied. "It can feel good, but is ultimately useless, if you cannot do what is needed for the greater good. Do you disagree?"

For a while, Uriel did not answer. She stared, rather surprised by Sonpra's way of thinking. It reminded her of a few commanders and nobles from back home. Although she did not always agree with justifying means, she did understand the need to doing things that others may find distasteful or immoral.

"No," she eventually answered. "You have a point. It's a truth; an ugly one, but a truth nonetheless."

They continued to watch the battle from a safe distance. Both sides fought furiously and valiantly, despite one clearly having the upper hand. As impressive as each warrior was, one warrior truly stood out among the rest.

Sidra of the exiles carved his way through the ranks of the enemy. With his claws he slashed and shredded flesh and scales. With his club, he smashed bones and crushed skulls. He moved like a terrible force of nature.

"Quite a scary warrior we have under our banner," Jotun remarked with a smirk. "It's a good thing he is on our side."

"Indeed he is," Uriel murmured. She glanced through the warriors, searching for one in particular. "Where is Ragosh?"

"I believe that is his company over there, my lady," Mycelia replied, pointing at a certain area in the battlefield.

Redirecting her attention, Uriel soon spotted Ragosh fighting alongside a few other Ovoo warriors. He swung his sword and cut down every foe that crossed his path. Making use of the cramped space, the young Ovoo made sure he and those around him stuck tightly together. They pressed forward like an attacking wall, preventing their enemies from breaching their lines

"He is taking his time, but he is doing it well," Uriel complimented, rubbing her chin. "At the very least, he is not rushing recklessly forth to make a name for himself."

"There's nothing wrong with that, is there?" Jotun asked. "Youngsters often wish to become legends and have their names sung in the stories."

"Youngsters often don't know about the harsh realities of those stories," Uriel snapped. "It's all fun and games when you deal with tasks and foes beneath you, but once you face an actual challenge, despair and dread may begin to sink in."

"So you're telling me that you've NEVER enjoyed the thrill of riding close to death?" Jotun questioned, raising a brow.

"Only fools would actually enjoy that," Uriel coughed, a smirk forming around her lips. "Sadly, I am one such fool."

Before long, the battle reached its conclusion. The Chlamydo, Igua and Teii still had a fair amount of warriors left, but found themselves clearly outnumbered. Continuing any further would have meant suicide. Realizing they could no longer achieve victory, the three clans turned tail and fled as quickly as they could. Unfortunately for them, Uriel had no intention of letting them escape so easily.

"Do it," Uriel commanded Mycelia.

"As you wish, my lady," Mycelia replied with a nod.

She turned around and signaled five specific Ovoo to approach. These ones in particular had markings painted on their faces, and wore rather tattered, but bright mantles. They each carried a long pole that had a crystal embedded on the top.

These five stood around Mycelia, and began to recite a strange incantation, using the same odd language that the Sightless Sister used. Their pronunciation and wording seemed a bit off, compared to Mycelia, but they did manage to recite it similarly. Their crystals glowed brightly, emitting a strong wave of energy and power.

Mycelia took a deep breath, as she raised her arms to the side and recited an incantation of her own. Her voice echoed, as green light faintly glowed from underneath her visor. The incantation didn't last too long. After a few more words, she lifted both arms over her head. .

Suddenly, the earth shook slightly. Pebbles tapped on the ground. Everyone felt the shockwave, but still found themselves able to keep balance.

Then without warning, it happened. On the far side of the battlefield, a large wall of earth rose from the ground. It stood several feet, and prevented the Chlamydo, Igua and Teii from escaping. The survivors desperately attempted to claw up the wall, but found themselves falling back down.

The surviving warriors of the three clans quickly found themselves trapped and cornered by Ovoo and Chamael warriors. A few of them attempted to fight back in desperation, only to be slaughtered. As for the others, they dropped their weapons and surrendered themselves, pleading for mercy.

"Your spells have gotten frighteningly stronger," Uriel remarked.

"You gave me the idea, when you poured your power into me," Mycelia replied, lowering her arms. "If you could provide me additional magic, then perhaps my newfound apprentices could do the same. The only difference is that it does not injure me."

"Well, let us address our captives, shall we?" Uriel suggested.

Before long, the surviving Chlamydo, Igua and Teii found themselves kneeling before Uriel. The Overlord quietly and quickly counted them, before speaking. She totaled up to no less than a hundred survivors. It may have seemed like many, but compared to the large number that the vanguard had fought earlier, this number felt very small.

Uriel inspected these survivors. She found different expressions. Some of them appeared genuinely worried and terrified, others looked ready to accept their fate, and one last batch looked on with spite and indignation.

"Warriors of the Chlamydo, Igua and Teii!" Uriel called out. "You have fought very well, but you all have clearly lost. Not too long ago, I sent a message to all the clans to either stand aside or fight us. You have clearly chosen the later! Now, I offer you three new choices!"

"Return to your homes and stay out of our way," Uriel listed. "Join us in our fight against the Allosaur! Or become our prisoners! The choice is yours!"

The surviving warriors looked at one another, clearly surprised. They did not expect to be given the option to return home. As a matter of fact, they didn't even expect to receive any options at all. The warriors just assumed to be lectured about weakness and their fate, but nothing like this. A few did not quite know how to react. One, however, did.

"Are you mocking us?!" one of the warriors stood and bellowed. He had broad body of black scales and white spots.

"Mind your tongue, worm!" Mycelia sneered.

The warrior glared at Sonpra, as well as the other Ovoo and Chamael warriors around him. Then with a loud voice, he spoke.

"How could you all live with yourselves?!" he bellowed. "How can you serve under this puny creature that does not even have any fangs or claws?! How you disgrace your ancestors by submitting to outsiders!"

"Silence, you know not what you speak of!" Ragosh suddenly spoke, appearing from the vanguard.

Uriel raised her hand, gesturing Ragosh to calm down and fall silent. "Who are you, warrior?" she then asked.

"I am Brask, proud warrior of Clan Teii!" he declared, pounding his chest.

"Well, Brask of Clan Teii, you seem to have more fighting spirit in you," Uriel remarked. "Tell me, why do you fight us?"

"The Allosaur have always been good friends with the Teii!" he barked. His voice remained loud and condescending. "We fight to protect their honor and to show good faith!"

A few of the warriors of the Teii growled and grunted with agreement. The warriors of Chlamydo and Igua, on the other hand, told another story. Instead of showing pride, they rolled their eyes in cynicism and mockery. Clearly, they did not share the same feelings.

"Well, Brask of Clan Teii, if the Allosaur are such good companions, why have they yet to show themselves to us in the battlefield?" Uriel asked. "We've fought many clans, and not once have they appeared to fight us."

"Shut up!" Brask howled. "They have other concerns that need to be dealt with. They have no reason to fight weakling like you!" The Teii warrior pointed his finger specifically at Uriel, upon saying this.

Something clicked in Uriel's head. She gave a calm grin, but deep inside she felt a fire burning. Often, she would let something like this simply slide, but Uriel decided to perhaps teach this lizard, as well as the others who doubted her, a lesson.

"You think I am weak?" Uriel grimly chuckled, struggling from raising her voice.

"I don't think you are weak," Brask spat. "You ARE weak."

Uriel kept her frown at bay. "Hand him his weapon," she instructed.

"But my lady…!" Mycelia tried to stop her.

"NOW," Uriel commanded with a dark and eerie smile. Mycelia almost choked upon seeing this.

Nobody further questioned her decision. An Ovoo quickly returned Brask's spear to him.

"You think me weak?" Uriel chuckled. She tossed her mace aside and pulled out her sword, but held it by the blade, rather than the grip. "If I am weak, then I wonder what you would be, after losing to me."

Brask unleashed mighty roar. He sprung from the defeated crowd and lunged his spear with full force, only for Uriel to sidestep and dodge the attack. The Teii warrior attempted to reposition himself.

He turned his head towards Uriel, only to receive a powerful smack on the side of his face. A few of his teeth loosened. The Teii warrior dropped his spear. He stumbled around a few steps, as his vision slightly blurred. Before he could recover his senses, he received another smack to the face. This time, Brask dropped on the ground and tasted a bit of the dirt.

The Teii warrior shook his head and spat a bit of dust off his tongue. He then attempted to push himself back up. Before he could fully do so, Uriel sat on his back and pressed the blade of her sword against Brask's tail.

"I heard a lizard's tail grows back after you've cut it off," Uriel remarked in a very sadistic tone. She pressed the blade a bit deeper against the tail. "Perhaps we ought to see if there is any truth to that?"

"W-wait, don't!" Brask swallowed anxiously. He attempted to struggle, but felt the blade slide further. A thin line of blood trickled down. "S-stop, I was wrong! Please, don't!"

"Hmm… did somebody say something?" Uriel murmured, pretending to have not heard the warrior. "Oh well, time to see if this there is any truth to this myth."

The lizard folks could not help, but stare on with horror and dread at this act. Even Ragosh and Sonpra found their scales crawling with discomfort. Oddly enough, only Mycelia, Jotun and Sidra showed no reaction to the torture taking place. They either didn't mind or just didn't care.

"Please, I beg of you!" Brask pleaded desperately. "I'm sorry! Please spare me!"

Uriel snickered, and finally released the warrior. "Be relieved that I'm actually merciful," she hissed. "If I were a member of the Allosaur Clan, do you think I would have let you off?"

Brask thought for a moment. He slowly returned to his knees, and then shook his head in response.

Uriel sneered, "That is what I thought."

Sheathing her sword, Uriel turned her attention back to the other warriors. Fear, confusion and still traces of resentment still filled a few of their faces.

"Listen well, warriors of the Chlamydo, Teii and Igua! I shall tell you what I have told to the other clans that have fallen against us," she announced. "I am not here to destroy or enslave any of you, but to bring justice upon the Allosaur, who have so harshly persecuted the Ovoo and Chamael! Today, I give you three options. However, if you choose to get in our way again, you may not as be fortunate as you were today!"

The surviving warriors looked at one another, once again. They had only three options, but merciful ones nonetheless. Some took the chance to return home, very few decided to take their chance fighting for the other side. As for the rest, imprisonment sounded better than having to return home in defeat.